Tissue Paper Ball Holiday Craft!

You could not help but find this craft all over Pinterest this year, and my assistant and I fell in love with the look of these for holiday decorations. My idea was wanted to hang something fun and whimsical in my entryway before my holiday parties this year.

Here is how we arranged our different sized tissue paper hangings:

Start with 20X30 sheets of tissue paper. We found various versions with 6,8, or 10 tissue sheets stacked together. We found that 6 works best - 8 is just too thick.  We also tried varied versions of thickness of the accordion folding: but 1.5 inches works best for us :)

We aren't perfect at folding, you might not be either. Just cut off the extra on both ends and the side until everything is square. Measure the middle of the stack for the next step.

 We used florist wire to hold the pile together, Pinterest said you could also use a twist tie to hold the middle of the pile.

 Before you start the unfolding process, add the ribbon/string/fishing string so you can hang this beauty when finished.

 Layout the stack on its side and start by pulling up the top tissue paper.

 Since we used 6 sheets on this tissue ball, I pulled 3 sheets "up" and 3 sheets "down"  being able to adjust at the end.

 Before any pulling of the sheets you can cut the edges of the stack in a rounded or pointed edges. We preferred not doing anything to the edges.

 Didn't this turn out well? My entryway is covered in sparkle and holiday cheer!

 The pink ball is 18 inches in diameter, the blue is 15 inches in diameter. These pointed-edged silver balls are 10 inches in diameter.

Happy Holidays everyone!!!

How to Make the Perfect Summer Banner

We bought quilting squares - 5 for $5.59 (on sale) each square makes 2 double sided triangles for 10 triangles per bundle.

Make a Triangle pattern out of a manilla folder - ours is 8 1/4 inches across and 10.5 inches long from tip to the center of the top.

Trace the pattern using a marker and cut it out using a fabric scissor. We enjoyed using a zig zag scissor. (This works MUCH quicker with the help of an assistant)

The fabric comes a little wrinkled so we starched and ironed the triangles which worked really well.

If you can see, we marked the middle of our Piping cord (which we recommend using) and started in the middle of our cord. In order to not have the fabric pieces shifting on the line, to use fabric glue to glue the piping cord along the crease.

Then glue along the sides of the triangle and fold over the top triangle to the bottom half.

Here is how it turned out for our PJ/Spa Party! Click here to see our entire Spa Party facebook album on my page!

Here is the Finished product for our party! Click here to see the recap of our spa party!

My Holiday Traditions – Only 3 Days Until Christmas & Quick Cookies!

I am looking forward to the annual holiday traditions my immediate family has created over the years. First, Christmas Eve is spent at the home of my sister’s family. She and her husband are amazing cooks. Every year they delight us with innovative appetizers, main courses, and sides. The last 2 years we have enjoyed a “Turducken”, which is shipped from the South to Northern California. I always make dessert. A plain cheesecake is my sister’s favorite. Since I worked as an assistant pastry chef in college, I can make this one in my sleep! This year we will enjoy Persimmon Pudding with Hard Sauce and Chantilly Cream as well. YUMMY! Christmas Day is spent at my house where my husband and children all enjoy a big breakfast together. This year my Uncle is coming along with his flaky, “old school”, mouth-watering biscuits, just like my great grandmother used to make. Best part of breakfast this year is my husband has organized the children to execute all parts so all I have to do is enjoy in the meal. Christmas Day is for playing games and watching movies. Christmas dinner is my favorite, prime rib. I make it every year. It makes the house smell wonderful all day. I love, love, love it!

WOW! Only 3 days until Christmas and the fun has to start now! But wait, I forgot to make cookies to take to my favorite vendors…the dry cleaners, the UPS Store, the trainers that teach exercise classes at my health club, my hairstylist….the list goes on. If I only had a quick recipe I could make and deliver cookies to all of these great people that have helped throughout the year. But wait, I remember a friend of mine told me you could make cookies from a cake mix. I looked it up on Google and what to my wondering eyes should appear but many recipes all made clear! Here is a website and a recipe to get a start on making cookies quickly from a cake mix:


Ingredients
• 1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
2. Pour cake mix into a large bowl. Stir in the oil and eggs until well blended. Mix in chocolate chips. Drop dough by teaspoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets.
3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Remove from pan to cool on wire racks.
Nutritional Information Yields 2 dozen cookies
Cake Mix Cookies I
Servings Per Recipe: 12 (2 cookies per serving)
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 387
• Total Fat: 20.3g
• Cholesterol: 36mg
• Sodium: 297mg
• Total Carbs: 51.4g
• Dietary Fiber: 2.1g
• Protein: 4.1g

Health Tip: Eat, Drink, Be Merry!
Do not deprive yourself of deliciousness this season! However, be mindful of ingredients and serving sizes. I love the holidays and I always eat delicious morsels I would never eat unless it is the holiday season with the exception of caviar. I could eat caviar everyday but that is just me. It happens that caviar is one of the most nutritious foods for an adult and most importantly for children. It really packs a nutritional punch! I always couch my holiday dining exploits with my vitamins . No matter what I do or do not eat I know my vitamins will keep me healthy. Visit this website to learn how you can find out how easy it is to know how healthy you are and how well your vitamins are working for you to prevent disease and increase your energy. Contact me for a personal evaluation of how well your vitamins are working or for a Preferred Customer price , a 30% discount on retail, on your supplements.

Holiday Tradition - The Dice Game

Guest Posting – Julie’s Assistant Joy

For most Christmas’ while I was growing up, my family would get bundled up and drive from Southern Minnesota to Fargo, North Dakota for Christmas. The Holiday was filled with both sides of my entire family, amazing food, a children’s Christmas program (when we were really little), and lots of laughs and memories. During this event, about 5 years ago we began a tradition that I’d like to share with you for this Holiday season. Traditions are what we all look forward to at the holidays so I hope you enjoy reading about my favorite one.

To me, the holiday is not about the gifts and this is a great alternative to the gift exchange within families and creates a perfect holiday tradition you will remember long past any gift you receive.

The Dice Game – Joy’s Family Tradition
You can buy, or find in your home, interesting and cheap/free things to wrap up that are suitable for the various ages of who will be participating. This year I went to a few retailers and got things like cute recipe cards, magnets, and my husband ordered a few “guy” toys online. Each family brings about 10 items (in my case that is 50 gifts for about 15 people playing) wrapped and placed under a separate tree from the rest of the presents.  Start the Christmas music, grab a drink (hot cocoa is always fun) and  2 dice. Each person shakes the dice and when you get doubles you pick out a gift from the pile and open it.  When all the gifts have been opened, then doubles mean you get to steal a gift from someone else’s pile! This is where is gets interesting….you never know what will be the gift that EVERYONE seems to want. Then about every few minutes (someone keeps track) you stop the game and get to keep one of the gifts in the pile in front of you by placing the gift behind you. Once time is up – everyone has received a few cute small gifts and had many laughs while playing.

(Hint for an extra surprise: My mom once rolled a $5 bill into a toilet paper roll. No one knew it was there and didn’t want toilet paper! Now we check everywhere within the gift for surprises!)

My husband and I are flying to Fargo for Christmas this year and I have been looking for “Dice Game” gifts for months! Let us know if you tried out this game this Holiday and tell me what you think!
Merry Christmas Everyone!

Health Tip:  Dicey Health –Dicey Life (by Julie)
This is the time of year when we all begin to make resolutions for the impending year to come.  Think carefully about how you have felt, health wise, all year and right now.  Do you have as much energy as you like?  Do you like the way you look?  Write down all the things you eat and drink in an average week each year.  Write down how often and for how long you exercise in an average week over the past year. I believe we all have a pretty good idea of what we should be doing for our health. Write down one change you can make on a daily basis in your diet, substituting one unhealthy food/beverage for a healthier food/beverage.  Write down one change for the better you can make in your weekly exercise regime.   Next, you have to tell someone your plan.  You need to have accountability for success – we all do!  For example, I know a woman that gave up dessert after dinner for 1 year and lost 10 pounds by the end of the year!  One simple change made her feel better and her clothes fit better.  Don’t make dramatic resolutions because those are hard, if not impossible to keep.  Start with baby steps.  You will feel better about yourself and feel like you are taking control of your health and consequently, your life.  If you need support, seek out the help of a professional to get started.  Don’t leave your wellness to fate like a roll of the dice.  Resolve to take charge one tiny step at a time.

Give the Gifts that Give Back This Year

During the Season of Giving, I like gifts that give back to our environment. By taking care of our environment we are taking care of our loved ones and ourselves too! I am proud to be part of an organization that strongly believes in giving back to the villages that helped them create their products. The Epoch line from NS uses traditional remedies from indigenous cultures with botanical ingredients to create helpful treatments for us.
For example, in the Epoch line, $0.25 from the sale of every Epoch Baobab Body Butter is donated to the NS Force For Good Malawi Seeds of Hope project. These funds will be used to purchase and plant a variety of important and useful trees for the people of Malawi, including baobab trees and fruit trees. Malawi –one of the poorest countries – has one of the highest rates of deforestation in the world and there is an urgent need to restore and protect this precious natural resource. Read the scope of work provided by the Seeds of Hope project, which just makes me so proud. The Epoch Baobab Body Butter is made from the baobab tree which is one of the types of trees to be planted and drenches your skin with the much needed moisture during the winter months. For a full listing of the Epoch products and the communities served visit here.

Running out of time to shop? Receive a 30% discount on your products when you let me help you with your order.

This Holiday Season, help make our world a little better with every gift this year.

Health Tip: Winter Is Not Just Magical Snow Falls And Twinkling Lights…Its Dry, Chapped Skin, UGH!
Winter is the worst season for people who have dry skin – flaking, itchiness and tautness is usual and neglect of daily care can easily lead to habitual dehydration, with sensitive skins and red patches. During winter, the outer layer of skin becomes very dry therefore it is important to keep the skin moisturized. Even those who have oily skin must use light moisturizing lotions after cleansing to keep the skin soft. Therefore, going that extra step to pamper the skin with moisturizers and emollients is imperative.
To avoid “crocodile skin” on legs: Use a body was without soap such as NS’s Liquid Body Bar After bathing, apply a body lotion , while the skin is still damp. It helps to seal in the moisture.
For additional help with dry, red skin on your face email Julie@anuyoubyjulie.net

Only 24 Days Left Until Christmas… Give Yourself Permission!

I just love the winter holidays! The excitement starts for me in late August, right after my birthday. That’s when everything I do has the future goal of the holidays. I start purchasing marked down holiday décor as it inspires my vision for my decoration theme for the year. My daughter pointed out that we don’t do “Spring Cleaning” but “Fall Cleaning”. She’s right! We are getting ready for the holidays in August. This year I didn’t begin holiday preparations in August. It was then that my grandmother’s health was declining and so I spent that time with my grandmother; visiting making food to deliver to she and my Uncle, and styling her hair. So, I started in late October. By Thanksgiving, my house was not perfectly clean and decorated, with “zillions” of cute cookies made and appetizers frozen awaiting room temperature as in years before but I realized I was the only person that knew. My house looked tidy and festive. I was actually very proud of my holiday décor. Perhaps it is OK to give ourselves permission to not be “perfect”. The definition of “holiday perfect” I have created and no one else has a clue about it. I am glad I spent the time with my grandmother and not creating “holiday perfect” because I will forever remember time spent with my grandmother and “holiday perfect” is fleeting. So in the last 24 days before Christmas, give yourself a gift, the permission not to have “holiday perfect”. Gifts start in our hearts. When we are more relaxed then the gifts we give others are better with so much more meaning.

Health Tip: Holiday Party Ready, Get Your ZZ’s On – Make Time For Beauty Rest
People, there is some real science behind those “eight hours” of suggested sleep time. Maybe when you were 16, you could party all night and cover up those dark circles the next morning with a dab of tinted moisturizer, but if you’re like me and you’ve just realized you aren’t 20 anymore but almost 50, living on 6 hours of sleep just doesn’t to cut it when it comes to the skin on your face! Get some sleep and your skin will thank you. Not only does your skin require downtime to repair itself, but sagging skin and puffiness around the eyes make wrinkles look much worse. I haven’t found a dermatologist that disagrees. You want to be holiday party “beautiful”, right?